North Carolina State's captivating NCAA Tournament continued on Sunday when they defeated No. 4 seed Duke in the Elite Eight matchup. The Wolfpack were led by star big man DJ Burns Jr., who scored a season-high 29 points in yet another dominant performance.
Burns' star has shined so bright that it even caught the attention of Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic. The two-time MVP admitted that he was watching the Duke/NC State NCAA Tournament game in the locker room before his latest postgame press conference.
"He's amazing," Jokic said after facing the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday. "I think he's so skilled, especially lefty...seems like teammates like to play with him. Gotta be a good guy."
Nikola Jokic: CONFIRMED DJ Burns fan @beastboyburns
— RG 📷 (@RyanGreeneDNVR) March 31, 2024
"I think he's so skilled, especially lefty...seems like teammates like. to play with him. That'd be a good guy."
Joker was watching NC State-Duke before his presser lol pic.twitter.com/XlhAOZQuhd
Jokic was fresh off of having a massive performance to the tune of 26 points, 18 rebounds, and 16 assists in a 130-101 win against the Cavaliers. If anyone knows a thing or two about being a skilled and dominant interior player, it's Jokic.
Burns has been terrific throughout NC State's NCAA tournament, and now the Wolfpack are heading to their first Final Four since the program won a national title back in 1983. As a result, Burns was named the South Region's most outstanding player after averaging 18.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists up to this point in the NCAA Tournament.
Burns is certainly going to have his hands full as NC State takes on No. 1 seed Purdue on Saturday. It's safe to say that Burns taking on Zach Edey will be a matchup that the basketball world will have their eye on.
